Metalica
Metalica, known as "The Gleaming Giant of Ultima Segmentum," is an Imperial Forge World of the Adeptus Mechanicus that is located in the Segmentum Ultima of the Milky Way Galaxy. Metalica is situated in one of the most dangerous parts of the galaxy, near the Ork Empire of Charadon. Its people live in a constant state of readiness as they are always threatened by war. The planet is home to the Legio Metalica, a Loyalist Titan Legion also known as the "Iron Skulls," one of the oldest and most esteemed Titan Legions within the Collegia Titanica. History stellar cartographic map of the Forge Worlds of the Segmentum Ultima, including the Forge World of Metalica.]] Metalica, a Forge World nestled deep in the Ultima Segmentum, is formed almost entirely of metal. No rocky crust covers the dull silver of its surface. No flora or fauna makes its home there. Even the atmosphere is inimical to life. The sole exceptions are the legions of the Cult Mechanicus that purposefully keep the planet bare so their work can continue in blessed sterility. It was not always this way, but the Tech-priests are by nature jealous of their treasures, and have had their Skitarii drive to extinction all other species so their quest for enlightenment can continue at peak efficiency. So it is that Metalica is a world of hissing pistons, glowing forges and strata upon strata of industrial waste. Yet it is far from barren, for the engine-driven monstrosities that growl out of its furnace complexes are born by the hundred with every new dawn. The sheer auditory barrage that rings from its gunmetal mountains is deafening yet oddly inspiring, especially for the Skitarii that are inducted there. All weapons and machinery produced by Metalica can be identified by a distinct blaring sound that is purposefully made louder so that all foes might hear the industrial glory of the Omnissiah before they perish. The hyper-pollution of the planet and its proximity to the Ork Empire of Charadon have prepared its legions well for an age of war -- and the defence of Armageddon. The last millennium has also seen Metalica's Cult Mechanicus united once more against a common threat -- that of the daemon. Metalica's Tech-priests have a special revulsion for anarchy, and when the industrial lynchpin world of Armageddon was invaded by the Forces of Chaos during the First War for Armageddon, their priesthood was quick to answer its call. Metalica's overseers were driven by morbid curiosity as much as a sense of duty and solidarity, but when the Daemon Primarch Angron's nightmarish hosts rampaged across the planet, the Tech-priests met them with every weapon at their disposal -- and harnessed reams of data in the process. Alongside their Imperial Knight allies from the nearby world of Kolossi, Metalica's Skitarii cohorts also fought at the forefront of many battles, including both the Second and Third Wars for Armageddon. With relentless fervour, the armies of Metalica strive to bring their own strict brand of order to the anarchy growing across the galaxy. The Iron Skulls '' Titan Legion, the "Iron Skulls"]] The Titans that serve the Adeptus Mechanicus are the most powerful ground-based war engines in the Imperium. Giant walking fortresses with firepower enough to level cities, the largest of these God-machines carry great cathedrals to the Omnissiah's glory upon their broad shoulders. Though few in number, the Titan Legions have conquered myriad foes, both within the Omnissiah's domain and without. Almost all Forge Worlds have Titan Legions that defend them, and Metalica is no exception. The "Iron Skulls," formally known as the Legio Metalica, is amongst the most vaunted of its kind. Its glorious history stretches back to pre-Imperial times, and its Titans have been part of Mankind's destiny ever since. Tragically, the Legion was all but destroyed during the Third War for Armageddon, although it has been rebuilding ever since, hoping to reclaim its honour. Princeps Kurtiz Mannheim, realising his allies would soon be overrun, led the Legio Metalica and its Skitarii escort against a wave of Ork Titan-class threats and six million Ork infantry. After slaying an Ork Gargant in a gruelling duel, Mannheim ordered his badly wounded Titan Steel Hammer to self-destruct, his sacrifice killing another two Gargants and burning out the heart out of the Ork offensive in the process. House Raven of House Raven]] House Raven first allied itself with the nearby Forge World of Metalica during the early stages of the Great Crusade. Lord Gregor, Raven's ruler at the time, struck a deal with Metalica's Tech-adepts to ensure that his House had sufficient Sacristans -- artificers of a Knight World trained and inducted into the Cult Mechanicus. For House Raven, these specialists became known as the Iron Brotherhood. In return, Gregor swore eternal fealty to Metalica -- a pact that remains to this day. Notable Campaigns *'The Elucidan Schism (923.M39)' - By their toil does the Forge World of Metalica thrive, imposing order and logic upon the worlds nearby. The only real blight upon Metalica's history of terrible efficiency came from within. In 923.M39 the Elucidan Schism saw hard-line Fulgurites shoot down a Corpuscarii congregation on a pilgrimage to Mars, claiming their wasteful ways would destroy the balance of the priesthood upon the Red Planet. The resultant civil war raged for several hundred standard years, and the planet has been a lodestone for militant Electro-priests of both factions ever since. *'First War for Armageddon - Battle of Blood Glade (444.M41)' - In 444.M41 a Renegade host of unimaginable size appeared in the skies above the Hive World of Armageddon, its ranks teeming with Chaos Space Marines and daemons. At its head loomed the Daemon Primarch Angron, twisted by centuries in the Warp and filled with fathomless hatred for the Imperium. The armies of Mankind were quick in their response, for Armageddon was a vital munitions world and a lynchpin of the surrounding sector. Along with the Astra Militarum regiments and Adeptus Astartes Chapters came the Metalica Armageddon Excarnaclade. Created from twelve maniples, the Excarnaclade was a macroclade of cohorts drawn together by ancient oaths of allegiance. Almost since the time of Metalica's founding, the Excarnaclade had fought beside the armies of Armageddon, and the Skitarii hastened to the war-torn planet in order to honour that ancient record. As the greater forces of the Imperium, under the masterful leadership of Space Wolves Chapter Master Logan Grimnar, created a defensive line along the River Chaeron, the Excarnaclade entered the equatorial jungles to slow the enemy's advance. The two forces met in a ragged forest ravine between two broken cliff faces. On one side the hosts of Metalica, on the other, the Heretic forces of the Chaos Lord Gorterrox Soulreaper. Soon, a pitched battle ensued, as the Khornate warriors tore into the machines, massive blades destroying all before them. But this was merely a feint, designed to lure the Soulreaper to his inevitable doom, as a thousand Skitarii turned as one and took aim at the Chaos Lord. With a silent command, hundreds of energy carbines, calivers and rifles engulfed Soulreaper in a storm of fire. Screaming his rage, the Chaos Lord charged through the flames, his armour shredded by blasts and his body scorched by plasma. With practiced ease the Skitarii ranks parted and the Ironstriders sprinted forward. A dozen Taser Lances found their mark, and with a final blood-curdling scream Gorterrox was sent crashing to the smouldering ground. With the Chaos Lord's destruction, Angron's speartip had been blunted, and though his hosts were far from defeated, precious time had been won for the ultimately successful defence of Armageddon from the hosts of the Blood God. *'War of Slime and Metal (Unknown Date.M42)' - Metalica is besieged by the Plaguehosts of Nurgle, the 3rd and 7th Plague Companies of the Death Guard, other Chaos Space Marines, the corrupted Titans of Legio Morbus, and no fewer than seven fallen Knight Houses. Only the arrival of the entire House Raven staved off defeat, and only with the aid of a war fleet from Deimos was the attack finally broken and the daemons banished. Notable Metalican Personnel *'Magos Ozmerhadus Phal' - Ozmerhadus Phal is a notable Magos Dominus of the Forge World of Metalica whose madness and brilliance are indistinguishable qualities as a devout servant of the Omnissiah. Rising through the ranks of the Metalican Tech-priesthood, he mastered many of the most complex techno-devotional rituals and savant-disciplines early in his career. As time went on, like many servants of the Machine God, Phal replaced more and more of his body with cybernetic parts, but over time he has developed an obsession with the purity of the machine. Phal has grown convinced that it was the Omnissiah's will that the planets of the surrounding star systems should follow Metalica's paragon example. The Magos argued that only in the absence of biological impediments could purity exist. Despite his gifts and expertise, Phal's philosophies were met with resistance from his peers, many fearing he strayed close to heresy -- the Age of Strife and the Occlusiad War held ancient warnings against such beliefs. However, Phal's chance to act on his idea came when expansionist elements on the Forge World were called to reawaken long-abandoned Metalican Adeptus Mechanicus facilities on nearby worlds. Despite his early successes in this campaign, Phal soon encountered serious resistance on Vortrex XII, a former krypto-stasis testing world, which had long since become a planet that possessed a broken temporal environment. Despite the desperate pleas of the Vortrexi not to cleanse their world of life, Phal launched a Cyclonic Torpedo into the planet's unstable core, scattering its chrono-stasis field and triggering a catastrophic implosion. Phal's actions on Vortrex became the first in a number of questionable planetary invasions. Phal has even come into conflict with the Knights of House Raven, long-time allies of Metalica, over his methods. Phal's questionable methods, along with his overzealous mission of extinction, has brought the Magos censure from the Fabricator-General of Metalica and the Lord of House Raven. Should Phal turn his attention back toward Imperial worlds he will have to be brought to heel -- however, for the time being at least they are content to watch him strike deeper into the Ork Empire of Charadon, where at the hands of the Orks their problem might take care of itself. Forge World Dogma Relentless March The Tech-priests of Forge World Metalica seek nothing less than to completely obliterate their foes and to re-order the galaxy according to their own dictates. They will let nothing sway their appointed task. Metalica Forces Appearance Metalica Iconography of Metalica]] Though Metalica's legions are fiercely independent from the cloying touch of Mars, the hammer and fist icon of Metalica is depicted in deep red in honour of their Martian forefathers. Metalica Forge World Colours Like other Forge Worlds, Metalica maintains its own Skitarii forces to protect its interests, annihilate the enemies of the Tech-priests, and fight at the vanguard of the Quest for Knowledge. Unusually, the heraldry of Metalica's Skitarii is dictated by their battlefield role. Skitarii Vanguard and Rangers wear burnished metallic armour plates beneath their white robes. Sicarians usually wear white battle-plate, forgoing red altogether. The white robes of Metalica's Electro-priests are complemented by tabards of deep red and gunmetal, the former a nod towards their heritage as part of the greater Adeptus Mechanicus, and the latter in honour of their metal-skinned world. In the traditions of the Adeptus Mechanicus, Metalica Skitarii wear their squad numbers on the hems of their robes, while Sicarians go largely without markings, with the exception of their Princeps. To honour Mars, the lining and trim of the Metalican cloaks are coloured red, symbolising the Martian foundations upon which the Forge World was built. Thick red trim rings the robes of the Metalican Priesthood, resembling blood soaking up from the ground into their cloaks. It is also said that the Forge World's Kastelan Robots also display the ritual colour to honour the blood they have spilt in centuries of war. The proud Ironstriders of Metalica usually bear the symbol of their Forge World on the housing behind the Dragoon or Ballistarius, along with the sigil of the maniple of which they are assigned. All of Metalica's Skitarii bear gunmetal prostheses and cybernetic enhancements made from the very same metallic substance that covers the planet's surface. Its Skitarii Alphas and Titan Princeps wear metal mined from the peaks of the planet's titanium mountains. The vehicles of Metalica's War Cohorts are arrayed in the bone white of their Forge World's heraldry, though it is never long before they bear the marks of fire and destruction. Relics *''The Adamantine Arm'' - Bionic arms are standard issue enhancements on every Forge World, but it was a Tech-priest of Metalica that saw room for improvement. Powered by batteries of micro servo-engines, the entire arm has been sheathed in nigh-impenetrable adamantine, making an appendage that is mightier and harder-hitting than any yet invented. Long live efficiency! Sources *''Codex: Adeptus Mechanicus'' (8th Edition), pp. 12, 20, 28, 35, 62, 67-68, 95, 98-99, 101 *''Codex: Adeptus Mechanicus - Cult Mechanicus'' (7th Edition), pp. 30, 95-98 *''Codex: Adeptus Mechanicus - Skitarii'' (7th Edition), pp. 33, 92-97 *''Cult Mechanicus Painting Guide - Crusaders of the Machine God'' (Painting Guide), pp. 34-45 *''Imperial Armour Volume One - Imperial Guard and Imperial Navy'', pg. 8 *''Skitarii Painting Guide: Legions of the Omnissiah'' (2015), pp. 20-33 *''White Dwarf'' 180 (US), "Fists of Death: Titans Tactics", pg. 30 Gallery File:Metalica_Skitarii_Ranger.png|Metalican Skitarii Vanguard unit San-323/Mk12, Alpha Maniple, Alpha Cohort, Foot Soldiers of the Iron Skull Metalica Vanguard.png|Metalica Skitarii Vanguard warriors Metalica Rangers.png|Metalica Skitarii Rangers Metalica Sicarian Rustwalkers.png|Metalican Sicarian Ruststalkers Metalica Sicarian Infiltrators.png|Metalican Sicarian Infiltrators Metalica_Electro-Priests.png|Metalican Electro-priests Metalica Onager Dunecrawler.png|Metalican Onager Dunecrawler Metalica_Kataphron Destroyer.png|Metalican Kataphron Destroyer; vertical bars of crimson are often used to distinguish different clades of Metalica's Kataphron Battle Servitors Metalica_Datasmith.png|A Metalican Legio Cybernetica Datasmith Metalica_Kastelan Robot.png|Metalican ''Kastelan''-class Robot; to honour the blood they have spilt in centuries of war, Metalica's Kastelan robots wear ritual red over ivory es:Metalica Category:M Category:Adeptus Mechanicus Category:Forge World Category:Imperial planets Category:Imperium Category:Planets Category:Skitarii Category:Collegia Titanica